PENTICTON
– Tolls on the Coquihalla Highway
will be removed immediately, Premier Gordon Campbell announced today during his
annual address to the Union of B.C. Municipalities.

“The Coquihalla Highway opened British Columbia’s
Interior like never before, generating economic opportunities and fostering the
tremendous growth of communities,” said Premier Campbell. “Former Premier Bill
Bennett had a vision for a highway that would see our province reach its full
economic potential. It has succeeded beyond anyone’s expectations and has
become the foundation for a transportation network that has opened up Canada’s Pacific Gateway to North
America and the rest of the world. Today’s announcement marks the
next milestone in that legacy.”

The highway officially opened on
May 16, 1986, at the dawn of Expo 86. The first phase, from Hope to Merritt,
opened on that day. Phase 2, from Merritt to Kamloops,
was completed on Sept. 4, 1987 and the final phase, the Coquihalla Connector
from Merritt to Kelowna,
was completed Oct. 1, 1990. The highway significantly enhanced access to
Interior communities resulting in population and economic growth.

The total capital cost of the three
phases was $848 million. Current annual revenue collected by the tolls is
approximately $57 million. The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure
anticipates that revenues collected from the tolls since its opening will have
effectively offset those total capital costs by next month.

“Removing the tolls will mean
literally hundreds of dollars annually in the pockets of British Columbians who
regularly use the highway,” said Premier Campbell. “It will also mean thousands
of dollars in annual saving for truckers who account for 20 per cent of highway
traffic along the corridor but pay more than half of the total toll revenue.”

Approximately 3.4 million trips are
completed across the Coquihalla
Highway each year in British Columbia. In 2007, 2.7 million
passenger vehicles and 700,000 commercial trucks crossed the corridor.

“In 2003, our
government passed a policy clearly stating that any infrastructure financed by
toll revenue must see the tolls removed upon recovery of construction costs,”
said Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Kevin Falcon. “This milestone
marks an important time in our province’s history as we continue to open up our
transportation networks with projects such as the $3-billion Gateway Project,
the KickingHorseCanyon, the Cariboo Connector
four-laning, the WilliamR.BennettBridge and port and
airport expansions.”

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1 backgrounder(s) attached.

Media

contact:

Bridgitte
Anderson

Press Secretary

Office of the Premier

604 307-7177

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